


Daybreak

by Maverick



Category: Shelter (2007)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-06-04
Updated: 2010-06-04
Packaged: 2017-10-09 22:05:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/92106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maverick/pseuds/Maverick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shaun would do anything to keep his family safe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Daybreak

The wind is cold and wet as he walks down the gangplank off the ferry. Shaun's never been a fan of Oregon, every time he's visited it's been gray and bleak as if all the color has been bleached away by time and neglect. Today's no exception. But today, the weather seems to be matching his mood, rather than the other way around.

The call came last week. A cryptic message from Jeannie asking for them to come up. Or rather, asking for Zach to come up. And while there was no mention of Cody, both Shaun and Zach have a pretty good idea what she wants. It's been over two years since Jeannie moved away leaving her son behind. Two years with only a few brief phone calls which always leave Cody silent and sad for weeks afterward. So both he and Zach decided that Shaun should be the one make the trip north.

Okay, it wasn't that easy. They fought about it for a couple of days because Zach's heart is just too damn big for his own good. But once he realized that Jeannie may very well be trying to take Cody back, Zach stopped fighting because while he loves his sister, he loves his nephew more. And they both know that the happy kid they've watched Cody blossom into over the last two years would be lost in the neglect of Jeannie's care. She might have given birth to Cody, but she was never his mother.

Never.

So Shaun doesn't give a damn what Jeannie wants, she's not ripping his family apart. He's not letting her take Cody away from the only real home he's ever had. So he'll do whatever it takes. He'll suck it up and call Larry for money and use Larry's influence and high paid lawyers to make damn sure that they get permanent custody. While it might not be his style and it goes against his basic instinct, there isn't anything he wouldn't do to keep Cody where he belongs. And in the end, he thinks that's what finally makes Zach agree to let him be the one to go.

Jeannie is waiting at a coffee shop near the dock. She looks tired and years older than she should. He know she hasn't had an easy life, but Shaun will leave the sympathy to Zach. The only good choice Jeannie ever made was giving Cody to Zach, and Shaun's not about to let her renege on that choice now.

She spots Shaun and looks around for Zach, frowning when she doesn't see him.

Shaun sits down. "Zach and I decided it would be best if I came alone."

"I asked for Zach."

Shaun shrugs. "Well you got me. What do you want Jeannie?"

Jeannie goes quiet -- almost shy -- Shaun thinks, if he didn't know her better. "This would be easier with Zach," she says as if that's the answer.

Shaun's already had enough. "Cody's fine by the way. Won a ribbon for being the best speller in his class last month. We keep it on the front of the fridge." He knows he's being cruel, but sometimes that's what you have to do to keep your family safe. "And he's losing his baby teeth once a week now it seems. Making a killing from the tooth fairy. Not to mention he's growing like a weed."

Jeannie looks like she's been slapped.

Good is all Shaun can think. Good. Now that he's got her attention. "Again, what do you want Jeannie?" It isn't until right at that moment that Shaun notices a baby carrier at Jeannie's feet complete with a sleeping baby inside it. His mouth goes dry.

Jeannie picks the carrier up, setting it on the table between them.

"This is why you called?"

Jeannie nods.

"I named her Julia."

"After your Mom."

Jeannie nods again.

Little Julia opens her eyes and Shaun is lost. "They're Zach's eyes."

"Yes, they are," Jeannie says before Shaun even realized he'd said that out loud.

"She's a good baby. Healthy. Alan doesn't want kids." The not even his own stays unsaid. Jeannie picks Julia up and places her in Shaun's arms.

Of all the scenarios that Shaun ran through his head on the ferry over from Seattle, this never entered his mind. Jeannie wants them to take her daughter, to raise her along with Cody. He knows he should call Zach, should get his okay, but he he doesn't. He knows what Zach's answer will be. The same as his own.

"Cody should know his sister. It will be the last time. I made sure of that after I gave birth."

It's Shaun's turn to nod. "It has to be permanent, Jeannie. For both of them. You relinquish all of your parental rights and name Zach as their guardian."

Jeannie frowns. "Only Zach?"

Shaun nestles Julia into his arms. It's a perfect fit. "As he's directly related, he has to have custody before any other arrangements can be made."

Jeannie stands up. "But you'll make other arrangements?"

Shaun runs his finger along Julia's pudgy cheek, making her smile. "Yes. Zach and I are in it for the long haul Jeannie. We're a family."

"Good," Jeannie says as she bends down and kisses Julia's head. "Send whatever papers need to be signed and I'll sign them."

Then she's gone without even a look backward. Shaun settles Julia back down into her carrier as he pulls out his phone to call Zach. He can't stop smiling as Julia does her best to shove her entire fist into her mouth, all the while looking up at Shaun with eyes the mirror images of the ones he loves most dearly. Their lives just got even more complicated, but he can't seem to mind.

As he boards the ferry back to Seattle, the sun breaks across the horizon, bright and full, and Shaun looks down at Julia and smiles. He might just like Oregon a little bit after all.


End file.
